Servants of Darker Gods
by Grendle1853
Summary: A dark and unknown force comes after the Batman, and it has a long buried connection to another founder of the League.
1. Chapter 1

**The Lady Isis was nice enough to Beta this for me, so all praise goes to her. Now on to the show!**

Tonight, Wayne Manor is more filled than usual. In the dining hall, the grand table is finally holding a family dinner (though not one large enough to remotely fill even half the table), as Dick, Tim, Casandra, Stephanie and - the guest of honor - Barbra all join Bruce and Alfred for a meal in celebration of Barbra's new freedom.

"Thanks, guys, I mean it," the guest of honor says from her seat right next to Bruce.

"We are all so happy for you," Cassandra says with a rare smile on her face.

"Greatest news ever!" Steph shouts.

"Yes it is," Bruce agrees.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Great news, insanely happy for Barbra, but _what_is making that delicious smell?" Tim asks, looking around.

"Hey!" Dick says giving his adoptive brother's shoulder a shove.

"No Dick, I'm with Timmy. Where is that food?" Barbra asks, her mouth literally watering.

"While this is a celebration," Alfred says, stepping into view holding a large tray with a cloche over it, hiding whatever masterpiece is inside, "I expect all of you to remain seated until I've brought out all of the-" Before he can finish, he begins to stumble. His eyes flutter, and suddenly he collapses onto the floor.

"Alfred!" Bruce shouts as the entire family jumps up to give aid.

They don't get very far though, as one by one, each of the guests starts to faint and fall to the floor. The last to drop are Dick and Bruce, and as Dick begins to slowly sink to the ground.

Bruce's mind raced. _Something knocking us out one-by-one, fast. Alfred is the first to go down - he was the only one standing. He's followed by the girls, then Dick and Tim. I'm still up, which is probably to do with body mass. Gas!_

Armed with that knowledge, Bruce throws himself across the room and hits a switch, causing fans to start clearing the air of the gas. It doesn't help - Bruce feels himself slowly lose his battle with the drug. It is already in his veins as he frantically roots through a draw, until he pulls out a bright red first aid box. As he pulls open the top and looks inside, he can hear glass breaking and heavy footsteps in the hallway. As the intruders near, he finally finds a large syringe, filled with adrenalin. He quickly pulls the cap off and plunges into his chest while pushing down the plunger.

New life surges through the Dark Knight's body at the speed of lightning. He soon pulls himself up, arms himself with a pair of knuckle dusters from the drawer and a pair of knives from the table, then stands in front of the door, ready to greet his uninvited guests.

The large wooden double doors are soon thrown open and four women step in. Each of them appears to belong to a different ethnicity, but all of them are heavily muscular, almost superhumanly beautiful and above six feet tall. They are all dressed in uniform black, with any bare skin he can see covered in tattoos. Even with all the evidence, it is their stance which truly gives away their identity.

"Amazons," Bruce practically growls.

"He still stands," the one who seems to be the leader of the group, says into her communicator.

She is dark-skinned, with violet-colored eyes. The language she uses is the same as the one spoken on Themyscira, but her dialect is like none Bruce has ever heard. Bruce hears a voice on the other end answer in the same language, "You were warned not to underestimate the Batman."

"Get out of my house," Bruce orders in cold tone, using their own tongue.

The four women step apart and their leader tells him, "You are coming with us," in perfect English.

His voice controlled and his eyes filled with cold rage Bruce answers. "Come and take me."

The leader snarls and steps forward. She throws a right jab straight at his jaw. With speed no man his size should be cable of, Bruce sidesteps to the right and delivers a right hook to the left side of her chest. Shocked by her opponent's agility and by the sudden pain, the Amazon pauses just long enough for Bruce to deliver a right hook to the right side of her chest, and then drop low to deliver a crushing right-arm blow to her right knee. As she begins to fall, her enemy springs back up to deliver a rising left hook to the underside of her chin, knocking the large woman out.

As the entire exchange happens in the span of a few blinks of an eye, the other three look on in amazement. Bruce looks between the three of them and asks, again in their own tongue, "Who's next?"

The three Amazons decide to attack as one. The woman closest to him (red hair and tanned skin), goes for a leg sweep, as the attacker to his right (the tallest and most muscular Asian woman he has ever seen) tries to deliver a roundhouse to his head, while the one to his left (Middle Eastern) and furthest way simply attempts to rush him. Batman's response to this is to leap up over the leg sweep while somehow spinning himself backwards. It keeps his body and head under the kick, before he throws out both legs into a two footed kick. It landed right on the chest of the woman before him, before rolling back to his feet and using the charging Amazon's own momentum to throw her into her Asian friend. The redhead recovers quickly though and returns with a powerful kick to his ribs. It sends him backwards spinning to the ground in front of his dining table.

As the hero uses his chair as a crutch to pull himself up, the three woman begin to advance on him again, with the Middle Easter Amazon saying, "You can't win this fight."

Batman gives them a slightly deranged smile. "I've fought a real Amazon before. You've got nothing on her." Then he throws the chair right at the center of the woman's face.

While she easily catches the furniture, Batman capitalizes on the distraction to pull out two hidden knives and throw them at his other two attackers, hitting each of them in the leg. The Amazon holding the chair glances at both her allies as they go down. She tosses the piece of furniture aside just in time to duck out of the way - the man she was sent here to capture is now flying at her in a running jump kick. She turns to him and goes on the attack, throwing out a series of vicious punches and kicks. All of them, her very frustrating opponent narrowly avoids. It has been so long since the Dark Knight fought outside his armor he has forgotten how free and easy his movements feel without it. It's helpful when fighting the murderous blows of super strong killer women. Though his enemy continues on the offensive with no sign of tiring, eventually Batman sees the opening he was waiting for and crushes the pepper shaker in his hand (which he had somehow grabbed from the table) throwing it into her eyes. The redhead looks away, shielding her eyes from the burning powder, which is exactly what her enemy waits for. He unleashes a torrent of powerful blows across her gut, chest, and finally her face, before finally delivering a backwards spinning roundhouse kick which finally puts her down.

The hero doesn't get much of a chance to catch his breath though, before the Asian Amazon finally manages to pull the serrated blade out of her thigh and throws herself at him. She knocks Batman to the ground and brings the knife down, aimed directly at his heart. The Dark Knight is just barely able to catch her arm with his, but with the difference of strength, it is a losing battle. The blade slowly begins to sink closer to his chest. His assailant's eyes are wide and filled with murder. Thinking quickly, he collects a good bit of saliva in his mouth then spits it out with surprising speed an accuracy, hitting her right in the eye. When she involuntarily turns away, Batman has time to roll out from under her. He then quickly jumps to his feet, kicks the knife out her hand, and slams the heel of his shoe into the back of her head.

Batman then takes a moment to breathe before turning to his last attacker, still on the floor trying to pull the knife out of her knee joint. She tries to get into a defensive stance when he approaches, but Bruce simply kicks the end of the protruding blade. The wave of pain which that causes sends her back to the ground. He then grabs her leg and uses it to slam her back first into the wall three times before he lets her drop to the ground, unconscious.

The battle over and his family beginning to stir again, Batman walks back to the dark skinned woman and takes her communicator from her. He holds it to his face, hits the button, and says, "Whoever this is, you've just made a very dangerous enemy."

The only response is a crack on the other side and then static. Putting the communicator aside, Batman uses some smelling salts to revive his guests. They all come around slowly, confused when they finally do.

"Whoa, looks like we missed the party," Dick says, getting back to his feet.

Bruce rubs his ribs and looks around, asking, "Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah," Barbra says blearily as everyone nods.

"Good," Bruce says, launching into the orders. "Dick, Stephanie, and Cassandra, I want you to search and restrain our party crashers before throwing them in a holding cell. They have meta strength so deal with them accordingly. Barbara, I would like you and Tim to go over the manor's security system and find out how they got in unannounced."

As the group disperses to take care of the tasks they've been given, Bruce moves over to where Alfred is sitting, taking longer than the others to fight off the remnants of the drug. Bruce helps him up, and then into a chair. "Easy, old friend."

"I am quite well, Master Bruce. A slight bump on the head, but that's all."

"Still, you could have a concussion. Just sit still for a moment."

Bruce did the same, reaching for his glass of wine and taking a large gulp. "It is a pity the dinner was ruined. I cooked Ms Gordon's favorite," Alfred laments.

"We'll order takeout, something simpler for everyone."

"I am quite capable-"

"You've just been knocked out, Alfred, I'm not letting you anywhere near the kitchen for at least another two hours."

"There must be something useful I can do."

"There is. Could you please contact Diana at the Themysciran embassy, and tell her we have a problem?"

_TBC. Reviews are always welcome._


	2. Chapter 2

**Once again all thanks go to The Lady Isis for being my Beta for this, now on with chapter 2...**

Wonder Woman came home after a long hard day of being a superhero. "Now I know why Clark hates robots," she says to herself as she begins to change out of her armor. She gets as far as the second boot when the phone rings. She sighs and picks up the receiver. "Hello?" her tired voice asks.

"Good evening, Your Highness," a very familiar British voice answers.

A smile crosses Diana's face. "Now Alfred, I told you just to call me 'Diana'," she says back.

"My apologies, Diana, and I wish I was calling with better news, but Master Bruce asked me to call you about an attack on the mansion tonight," he tells her.

After Alfred describes the event, Diana flies straight for Gotham. When she reaches the mansion she lands on the vast back lawn and comes in through the kitchen door. She walks in to find Barbra and Dick sitting at the counter eating sandwiches.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, we just had a nap and when we woke up, we took care of the mess," Barbra explains. "Also Dick got to strip search an unconscious Amazon."

Diana turns to Dick and he explains, "Casandra and Steph did the searching, _I_did the carrying. Amazons are heavier than they look." After a moment he looks rather embarrassed at Diana and says, "Not that-"

"Amazons are large, muscular women. We do not put much stock in being light," she assures him. "Where is Bruce?"

"He got into his work clothes and went down into the basement," Barbra explains.

Diana thanks them, and heads for the cave. She goes through the clock entrance and down the stairs to find Batman sitting at his computer, going over the footage from the mansion's security cameras. She looks at the giant screen and sees her friend battling for his life, against women using Theymisciran martial arts.

"You've been going easy on me during our sparring sessions," she notes.

"Hardly, if any of these women were as good as you, I'd be dead," he tells her.

She looks at the screen as it shows him taking out the redhead. "You're aren't giving yourself enough credit," she says. Then she looks back at him and asks, "Where are they?"

He leads her through the gave to a series of holding cells, four of which hold the attackers. "I'll take them to Themyscira, well get answers from there," Diana tells him.

"No, I want to interrogate them here," he answers.

"Bruce, they are my people," Wonder Woman insists.

She knows she said the wrong thing when he turns and glares at her. "Your people? These women came into my city, gassed me and my family, and assaulted me in my own home, I don't give a damn whose people they are!" he finishes, in an uncharacteristic yell.

Ever the diplomat, Diana says, "I can see you're upset, and I can understand that. So how about we _both _handle the interrogation - but I want your permission to take them back to Themyscira afterward. Deal?"

Bruce nods. "That's acceptable."

Diana touches her friend on his shoulder and says, "Something's gotten to you Bruce, something else apart from this. What's wrong?"

"They knew who I was, Diana. I've kept my identity secret for years to stop something like this from happening. To protect those closest to me," he explains.

"I understand," she tells him. "Come on, let's figure this out."

The two of them manhandle the leader of the four into an interrogation room. They strap her into a chair made of a titanium and Nth metal alloy, then Diana takes her lasso and wraps in around the prisoner. She sits across the table from her and orders, "Wake up."

The Lasso glows and the dark woman is instantly awake. She looks between Batman and Wonder Woman and says, "So you brought the Princess?" she asks in a language very familiar to Diana.

"Who are you?" Diana asks.

The Lasso glows again, and the woman it holds is compelled to answer, "I'm called Onyx."

"Are you a member of the Bana-Mighdall?" Wonder Woman asks.

"No," Onyx answers.

"You aren't from Themyscira, who are your people?" Diana asks.

The dark skinned woman struggles to stay silent as the Lasso of Truth glows brightly around her. Finally she is forced to spit out, "My people are The ξεχάσει."

"The Forgotten?" Batman asks.

"Explain where your people came from," Diana orders.

"Before the war which devastated your civilization, and before your rulers argued liked schoolgirls and split the survivors into two different tribes, we were banished from our home by our sisters. We were cast out into the wild like dogs. We were expected to die. We survived however, and we thrived in the secret, dark places of the world. Now is the time for our victorious return," Onyx explains.

Batman takes hold of the Lasso and asks, "What do the Xechasmenos want with me?"

"I was simply told to take you alive," Onyx says. Then she smiles, "But after seeing how you handled yourself, I'd keep you chained to a bed and use you for breeding stock."

Batman leans close to her and growls, "Who sent you after me?"

"Tal Rashiarna, the leader of the Xechasmenos, the Priestess of Darker Gods," she answers, her eyes glazing over a bit.

"Where can we find her?" Batman asks.

The Lasso glows bright and Onyx is about to answer, but her head falls back, her eyes roll up to the whites, and a different voice comes out her mouth and tells him, "Too close, Dark Knight."

Then before their eyes, the bound woman's body begins to shake violently as if she is having a seizure. Her tattoos glow, then her head falls forward and she goes still.

Wonder Woman quickly rushes over and checks the woman's pulse. "She's dead," she tells him.

Batman runs out and checks the others to find them in the same state. "They all are," he calls out.

Wonder Woman walks out and looks in shock at the bodies of the lost Amazons. Her expression turns resolute and she says, "I'm going to return to Themyscira to learn all I can about the Xechasmenos."

Bruce nods, "While you do that I'll search for Tal Rashiarna."

_TBC. Reviews are always welcome._


	3. Chapter 3

**Once again we give thanks to The Lady Isis for her betaing, and thanks to everyone who reviewed! Now here is chapter 3...**

A wealthy couple once lived in a penthouse apartment, in the middle of Gotham. Now though, their bodies lie gutted and exsanguinated in the corner of the living room. Now, their home is a temporary base for an eight member unit of the Xechasmenos. In the same room where the couple now rots, a woman with a shaved head and a great deal of piercings looks at a computer monitor, saying, "Killing Onyx and her group was unnecessary. We could have retrieved them."

"We had a hard enough time finding a way into the mansion, the cave underneath would be nowhere near as easy to invade with any stealth," the hooded woman onscreen explains, her voice laced with impatience. "Besides, the Amazon's Lasso would have extracted everything our sisters knew of us before they could have been rescued."

"Originally I intended to send an Honored Sister alone to retrieve him. But _you_ordered me not to use her for the mission," the bald woman retorts.

"We need the Batman alive. In addition, the Honored are not what anyone would call subtle. By the time she got inside Batman and his entire kin would be armed and ready for a fight."

"I still have seven other warriors and one Honored Sister at my side. We will succeed where Onyx has failed and bring this man to you," she promises.

"No you won't. Batman now knows of us, and he will be on the prowl. You and your sisters must disperse and become one with the shadows until you can meet up with the rest of us. Otherwise you are sure to lead them to our doorstep. This mission will have to wait until another moment arises," her superior orders.

"We can still finish the job," the Xechasmenos lieutenant insists.

"You have had your orders," the woman in the hood counters.

"And we shall obey, Priestess," the bald woman answers, looking down. The feed cuts and the lieutenant grinds her teeth for a moment in frustration. Then she takes out her communicator and says, "Lin, report."

"I've walked our perimeter four times in the last hour and have found no fools in bat-" the dark Amazon's voice is cut off then. The only thing the lieutenant can make out is some muffling and a series of blows before feed completely cuts off.

The bald woman returns her communicator to her pocket and shouts, "Sisters, our prey is coming to us!" Getting the attention of the other six women in the house, she instructs, "One of you - release our Honored Sister."

...

Meanwhile, Diana flies across the seas to her ancestral home. She can't help but smile at the beauty of the magical place as she soars over the lovingly built buildings and lush plant life on her way to the royal palace. Once there, she lands and begins heading into the grand building when her eye happens to catch her mother sitting on a nearby balcony.

"Mother!" Diana calls, walking to her.

The Queen turns and smiles at her daughter. "My little sun and stars!" She stands and hugs Diana before continuing. "I did not expect you to visit today."

"And I did not expect to find you awake at this late hour," her daughter replies.

Hippolyta sighs. "I'm afraid Morpheus refuses me entrance to his realm tonight," she answers.

"Maybe he predicted my arrival. Mother, I need to know something: other then the Bana-Mighdall, were there any other tribes of Amazons?" Diana asks.

"No," her Queen answers, "why do you ask?"

"Today my friend Batman was attacked, in his home, by a group of Amazons. After the battle was over he called for me and with the Lasso of Truth we questioned his attackers," Wonder Woman explains. "One of them told us that her people are called the Xechasmenos, and that they were banished by the rest of the nation before you and our sisters came to Themyscira. Even before we split with the Bana-Mighdall. They said that they followed one named 'Tal Rashiarna', and that she was a priestess of 'Darker Gods'."

Hippolyta looks shocked at that news. She walks to the edge of the balcony and shakes her head slowly. "In Hera's name, I never imagined this could be possible."

"Mother, I need to know this," Diana says.

The Queen turns to her daughter with sadness in her eyes and says, "Before our enslavement and the war for our freedom, in the days when our nation thrived, I had a friend named Tal. What she lacked in martial prowess she made up for with a clever mind and a talent for mysticism, and in my early years she was the dearest person in my heart. One day, the crew of a trading vessel vanished, with their ship, and all their supplies - still anchored at our shore. We scoured our lands for days and found no trace of the men. A season later when it happened again...our search was more fruitful."

"What did you find?" the Princess asks gently.

"A site below Tal's home, where the men had been killed in the most gruesome and inhumane of rituals. So hideous were the acts that they could be for no god of Olympus, or any who were kin to them."

"But the gods do sometimes demand blood," Diana points out.

Hippolyta shudders. "Never like this, Diana, believe me." She took a deep breath before continuing. "Tal and her followers were soon captured and I demanded to know why and for what purpose she carried out the grisly murders. She told me of a vision that she had, one of our people's future. She said it showed a time of great horror and hardship for us, when our Olympian patrons would do nothing to help us. So she said that we would need the aid of darker gods."

After a moment of silence Diana hugs her mother. When they separate, Wonder Woman looks into her Queen's eyes and asks, "What happened next?"

A single tear runs down the strong Amazon's face before she wipes it away and answers, "Though their crimes deserved death, I could not execute one who I had known and loved for my whole life. So instead I banished her from our lands. I thought her dead and...forgotten for centuries. Now it seems her legacy lives on."

After a moment Diana steps back. "I'm sorry but I cannot stay."

Hippolyta grabs her hand before she can take off and says, "Be careful, Diana. The evil you will face will be strong and likely...disturbingly familiar. I am sorry that it falls to you to correct my mistakes."

"Mother, do not apologize. This evil was not of your making, and it will soon be stopped," Wonder Woman tells her before taking off.

As the Queen watches her eldest disappear into the air she prays, "Hera, Gaia...any who would give ear to my prayers... go with my daughter, and give her strength."

...

Back in Gotham, Batman waits patiently in the shadows on the roof of the Dark Amazons' hideout. Below him, a bald woman barks orders as the rest of her team arm themselves, except for one who heads in the direction of the guest room. While most of the Xechasmenos take up traditional Amazon weapons (swords, spears, a double headed ax) one pulls out a KSK combat shotgun.

_Amazons with firearms,_ Batman thinks, _that's probably cheating._

Picking out the woman with the shotgun as target number one, he goes on the attack. Pressing a concealed button, he turns the lenses in his cowl to infrared and then flips a switch on a remote in his hand. Seconds later, the building bellow him is filled with thick, white fog.

With their vision obscured, all the battle-hard women get into defensive stances. After getting into position at one of the large windows of the penthouse, the Dark Knight aims his grapple gun at his target and fires. It breaks through the window, almost instantly makes it across the room, and grabs the large woman armed with the shotgun. It pulls her backwards to the him at almost equal speed, sending her crashing through the glass and into his arms. Before she has much of a chance to put up a defense Batman, slips a gas mask over her face - filled with a potent knockout gas similar the one the Xechasmenos used against _him_earlier that day. In a blink of an eye, she's unconscious. Batman takes her weapon and disappears again by the time her sisters make it over to her.

One of the Dark Amazons yells in rage. "Come out and face us, coward!"

A second later a gloved hand is over her mouth and stun gun is pressed to her neck, sending thousands of volts running through her body. After another moment goes by the Batman drops her limp but breathing (and smoking _just _a little) body to the floor. He doesn't get long to savour her defeat though, as out of the fog one of the dark amazons charges and almost skewers him with a spear. While he mostly dodges the deadly weapon, its blade does cut him across the back, causing a shallow gash. The woman drops it and tackles him, but before she can force the hero to the ground he rolls her into a Judo throw which sends her flying into the room's giant TV.

As he looks around he sees that his enemies are slowly encircling him. "You're good," the lieutenant tells him, "but you shouldn't have come alone."

Batman smirks. "Who said I came alone?"

Out of nowhere, a sleek black form comes and delivers a series of insanely fast and powerful blows to the bald Xechasmenos, quickly taking her down. The Batman smiles with pride before diving back into the fray. By the time the thick white cloud disperses, all of the Dark Amazons lay defeated on the floor.

The Batman then turns to his ally and says, "Well done."

Black Bat bows to her father and says, "It was a pleasure."

"You think you've won?" One of the Dark Amazons, the one who ran to the guest bedroom before the attack says. Her hand is on the handle. She offers both the heroes a cruel smile. "This battle is far from finished!"

She pushes open the door, and then steps aside. Something truly frightening walks out of the darkness. It stands, hunched over, at least seven feet tall, and its shape still is similar to the beautiful woman it once was. The creature has a great mane of pure black hair hanging down its back, it stares out from under its bangs with deep red eyes, and it smiles at the heroes with a wide, sharp-toothed grin. Its pink body is long and lanky with its arms and legs covered in small hooked spikes that grow out of its skin. The only thing the monster has for modesty is a chain wrapped several times around its breasts and a pleated leather skirt hanging off its hips. The demonic creature's blood splattered face looks at its new prey with a mixture of utter hatred and hunger.

"Go, my Honored Sister," the Xechasmenos commands. "Kill the girl, and maim the man."

Needing no more encouragement, the Honored Sister charges.

_TBC. Reviews are much appreciated._


	4. Chapter 4

**A big thanks to everyone who reviewed and as always to The Lady Isis for betaing this little story. Now on with the show...**

The massive female demon charges forward - no slower then her more human sisters. She starts things off with a massive swing of her right claw and spiked arm, which Batman is just barely able to backflip away from. With the fastest of glances between the two heroes, the pair work as one. Black Bat leaps into the air and crashes her foot against the beast's head with roundhouse kick as her mentor goes low and delivers a two-footed missile drop kick to her giant knee.  
>The two bats get back to their feet to see the Honored Sister smile wickedly, apparently unaffected by their blows. She then slams her deadly arm across Batman's chest, knocking him backwards through the air, impacting the wall behind him.<p>

As the Caped Crusader struggles to his feet, his formerly bruised ribs now cracked, he looks down and sees a giant gash in the front of his armor, reveling the titanium plate covering his chest and the large scratches going across it. Looking up he sees his adoptive daughter still battling their fiendish enemy, moving with lightning speed of the heroes of myth and slamming her enemy with blows as strong as her father's. Yet she is still unable to make a dent in in the monster's defenses. Her luck finally runs out when the Honored Sister grabs the heroine by the leg and smashes her into the floor. 

The massive former woman then lifts up the unconscious girl and pulls back her other clawed arm, ready to deliver a final, murderous blow to the Black Bat's limp body. Full of cold dread, Batman flings a handful of black, golf ball-sized orbs at the monster trying to kill his daughter. The spheres hit their target and erupt into small explosions. They finally make the fiend drop the girl and stumble backwards. 

The Dark Knight then throws himself on the pink fleshed beast and rams two razor sharp baterangs into her eyes. The Honored Sister does not cry or scream, or show any other outward sign of pain. Instead it simply takes one of its massive claws and grabs Batman by his cracked ribs, pulls him off her and slams him into a nearby wall. 

As her big sister proceeds to smash her opponent's struggling form into the walls, ceiling, and floor, the last standing Xechasmenos saunters up to the still-breathing Black Bat. Once she gets to her the Dark Amazon kneels down, takes the girl by the hair, and lifts up her head exposing her neck. She then pulls out a long dagger and whispers to her, "Good night little Batgirl."

Before the lovely killer can take the girl's life, Black Bat's eyes snap open. Her hand darts out and stops the Xechasmenos's knife hand with strong, steely fingers. With a quick roll, she slams her elbow into her attackers throat. She then rolls on top of the evil woman and repeatedly smashes her head into the floor until she is certain the Dark Amazon is unconscious. 

Looking up, Cassandra sees her father being beaten to death by the Honored Sister. She tries to stand but quickly falls back to floor - her leg is broken. She then reaches for batarang, only to find that her belt is gone. Scanning her surroundings, she sees that it was torn off in her battle with creature. It's lying on the floor, across the room from her. Knowing that time is running out she begins to crawl to it as fast as she can. 

Once Batman stops struggling, the Honored Sister pulls the batarangs out of her eyes and the holds up her prey to look at him. Not that she can, with her bloody and ruined eyes. The Dark Knight spits out a mouthful of blood and glares, unimpressed, at the monster. "What are you waiting for," he asks it, "a kiss?" 

Forgetting her orders to take the man alive, the fiend opens its mouth wide and moves to bite off the Caped Crusader's head. Before she can sink her teeth in though, a golden lasso is thrown around her neck. She's yanked backwards, making her drop her meal, and throwing her back into the room from which she came. 

With the monster temporarily out of the picture, Wonder Woman floats down next to Batman. "Bruce," she whispers to him. "Oh Hera, you're really hurt." 

"I'll be fine," he tells her. "Eventually. Take it down." 

As Cassandra crawls over to him, Diana stands and turns to her enemy, who has now recovered and is standing outside of the guest room's broken doorway. The super Amazon and the demonic Amazon begin slowly walking down the hallway towards each other, the Honored Sister licking its own blood off its face as Diana cracks her knuckles. From the bit of his brain that wasn't screaming in pain, Bruce deduces that the Honored Sister obviously has other heightened senses. She certainly can't see anything any more. When the two Amazons meet in the middle, they take a moment to just stare each other down before the Xechasmenos monster starts by swinging a deadly claw at the Princess's neck. Wonder Woman catches the blow with her unbreakable bracelet, stopping it dead. The Honored Sister looks down at the brightly clad woman in confusion. 

The heroine smiles up into her ugly face before kicking the fiend in the knee, knocking its leg out from under it. She then hits the creature in the face, with a crushing left cross before floating backwards in a circle and delivering a slamming two-booted kick into the monster's jaw. It tosses the Honored Sister into the air and slams her head into the ceiling. 

The demon lands on her feet, despite suffering real damage from the Amazon. She then darts forward and lands a backhanded blow on her enemy with her spiky arm. The blow throws Wonder Woman back and spinning, but she stops and rights her self in midair. She takes a second to look down at the deep, bloody scratches which stretch from the middle of her chest to her left shoulder. 

Diana calmly looks at her enemy before flying straight into her at superhuman speed, slamming her shoulder into the Honored Sister's gut, before floating up and dropping straight down onto the creature's face. The demonic monster rises once again, only for Wonder Woman to knock it back down and grab its head in her hands.

"Find peace," the hero gently tells it before she snaps the former woman's neck. 

With the monster now slain, Diana goes back and checks on her friends. She looks at Cassandra, assesses her injuries and asks, "Are any other members of your clan in the city?" 

Black Bat nods. "Yes, Barbara. I just called her, she'll be here in a few minutes," she answers. 

"Did she say if Dick and Tim got what I sent them for?" Batman asks, still clearly in pain. 

"Yes, and yes," his daughter answers. 

"Alright. Diana, take Black Bat back to the cave. I'll wait here until Batgirl arrives and starts restraining the Xechasmenos," Batman orders. 

"No, I'll stay and Diana can take you back," Casandra says. 

"You're hurt," he tells her. 

"No offense, sir, but you're hurt worse," Black Bat bluntly replies. 

Diana smirks, "She is definitely your daughter, Bruce." 

He glares at both of them and finally says, "Fine." 

Wonder Woman gently picks her friend up then looks over at Black Bat and asks, "Are you sure you're going to be alright?" 

"Yes, Batgirl will be here soon," she answers. "Get him home safe." 

"You have my word," Diana promises before taking off.

...

A few minutes later, Wonder Woman carries her injured friend into the Batcave, finding Alfred waiting patiently next to a medical bed. Diana lands and gently lays Batman down. "Hello again Alfred. I wish we could meet under better circumstances, but we never seem to make it do we?" the Princess says. 

"No, madam, but I prefer to look at the silver lining, such as at least my charge is still breathing," the Wayne family's keeper responds. 

"Barely. I'll go fetch the purple healing ray," Diana says. 

"No need," Alfred tell her, stepping out into the cave. "Master Bruce built his own," he explains, wheeling in a gigantic laser device with about a thousand cords leading out the back of it and into the darkness. 

Diana lifts an eyebrow. "Not quite as portable as mine," she says looking the mammoth piece of equipment up and down. 

"No, but almost as effective," Alfred says, pointing the business end of the device at Bruce. When he's about to flip the switch he looks over at Diana and says, "I would still take a step back." 

When Wonder Woman moves away from the bed, Alfred flips the switch on the device. All the lights in the cave dim and a bright purple beam of energy shoots out and washes over Batman's body. A moment later, the machine cuts off and the lighting in the Cave returns to normal. Then Bruce's eyes open and he sits up, only to groan in pain and lie back down holding his ribs. 

Diana rushes back to his side asking, "Bruce?" 

"Oh he is quite alright," Alfred tells her. "While Master Bruce's invention heals injuries almost instantly, for some reason the pain from those injuries persists for a few minutes afterwards." 

"It just...needs a few tweeks," Bruce grunts. 

"Of course, Master Bruce," he says. "You look like you were injured yourself Diana, may I render assistance?" 

Wonder Woman shakes her head. "I heal very quickly Alfred. Wounds as minor these will be gone in a few hours," she answers. 

After Batman and Alfred nod at that, Bruce turns to the elderly man and asks, "Did the boys get back yet?" 

"Master Timothy and Master Dick are on the way, they'll be here within the hour," the butler answers. 

"Cassandra and Barbara will be back soon, they'll be bringing meta prisoners. And Cassandra has a broken leg and probably other injuries," Batman explains. 

"I'll make the necessary preparations," Alfred says, walking away. 

After a few minutes of silence Diana asks, "Feeling better?" 

"Yeah, the pain is mostly gone now," Bruce answers, sitting up again. 

Wonder Woman gently, but forcefully lays him back down. "Bruce you were just almost killed by a horrific spiky monster. Take a little time to rest," she tells him. 

"I have work to do," he answers. 

"You always have work to do," Diana counters. "You'll do it a little later. Now rest." And when he looks like arguing she adds, "don't make me use the Lasso." 

Hearing that, Bruce can't help but smirk.

She smiles down at him and says, "Not what I meant, but..." she lets the sentence hang. 

The two just look at each other for a bit until Bruce breaks the silence with, "I think I'll take an hour to rest." 

"Good. I'll go help Cassandra and Barbara," Diana tells him. She walks away, leaving him laying with some interesting thoughts going through his mind.

_TBC. Reviews are always welcome._


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the reviews guys, and thanks for the betaing The Lady Isis! Now here is chapter 5...**

Bruce really tries to take a cat nap, but visions of a certain Amazon with a golden cord and little else dance behind his eyes, so after a few minutes he gets up and decides to change into an undamaged uniform and get back to work. He is up and at the computer when Diana and Barbra get back with Cassandra and their new guests. While Alfred is fixing Cassandra up, Diana and Barbara are hauling the Xechasmenos to the holding cells.

Bruce gets up and decides to check on his adoptive daughter. "How you holding up, soldier?" he asks.

"Purple thing helped," she answers.

"Good," he says as she gets back to her feet. "Going out again?"

"Night's still young," Black Bat answers.

"Watch yourself," Batman orders.

"Always," she answers before heading for a cycle.

"Are you sure you didn't have a forgotten liaison with Lady Shiva around 17 years ago?" Alfred asks.

Bruce gives his butler a raised eyebrow as the Batwing flies in and lands. When Nightwing and Red Robin hop out Batman asks, "You got it?"

"We got it," Dick answers, lowering the cargo hatch.

"I'm not sure this was a great idea though," Tim says.

"You don't think it will work?" Bruce asks.

"Oh I think it will work, but its owner is going to be a little pissed that we 'borrowed' the thing without asking," Tim explains.

The group hears a cellphone going off then. Alfred pulls the phone out of his pocket, looks at it, and hands it to Bruce saying, "Speaking of which - Mr. Hall sir."

Batman takes the phone and answers it, saying, "Carter. Yes. I sent them. No. When I'm done with it," and with that, he hangs up the phone and hands it back to Alfred. He then begins walking to the holding cells saying, "Pick it up and follow me," over his shoulder as he does.

Tim turns to Dick who tells him, "Hawkman once teamed up with Captain Atom and tried to take down him and Superman for the government. He's never really let that go."

Tim nods and helps his brother with their heavy prize.

...

The Xechasmenos lieutenant wakes up inside a human-shaped metal cage. It appears to be hanging from the ceiling, with her arms sticking out of an opening in the front. The Lasso of Truth is wrapped around her wrists, which are also handcuffed together. She looks out to see the Batman and Wonder Woman standing in front of her, and she begins to laugh. "Neither of you learn very quickly do you? You tried this earlier this very night, and all it got you were some burned-out corpses to clean up. This will end no differently," she tells them.

"Unfortunately for your friends, you're probably right, but not for you," Batman explains. He taps the metal cage holding the Dark Amazon and explains, "Nth metal. No magic spell can get to you from within there."

The bald lieutenant is speechless by that fact until Wonder Woman, while holding the other end of the Lasso, asks, "Where is Tal Rashiarna?"

"Trondheim," she immediately answers.

"Trondheim?" the Princess asks.

"It's a city in Norway," The Dark Knight answers.

"Norway. You think that makes the Asguardians the Darker Gods?" Wonder Woman asks.

"No, the Xechasmenos don't seem like the sort Odin or his subjects would use," Batman answers. Diana turns and gives him a look. "What? I know people," he tells her.

Wonder Woman shakes her head and turns back to the prisoner. "Who are the Darker Gods?" she asks.

"Their names should not be spoken, for doom falls upon those foolish enough to call out their names idly. They give us the power and strength to survive and one day gain vengeance, and we give them blood and lives. They are the beasts behind the stars, waiting for the final days and the chance to rule again," the bald woman answers with a wicked smirk on her face.

Batman turns to his partner and asks, "Ring any bells?"

Wonder Woman shakes her head, "They're not from my religion."

"We'll give Fate a call before we leave," Batman says.

Diana turns back to the prisoner and asks, "What defenses will we find when we get there?"

"Horrors that will tear you to pieces and feed you to powers which dwarf your minds and understandings," the Xechasmenos answers with an evil sneer. "Then we will track down all you hold dear and-"

Batman takes hold of the Lasso and orders, "Knock yourself unconscious."

The Dark Amazon follows the order, headbutting the metal cage hard, and with a loud clang slumps back against the Nth Metal rungs. Diana rolls her eyes and removes the Lasso. "You know that all we've done is narrow it down to a country of millions and a city of hundreds of thousands?" she asks.

"All we need," he answers, leading her out of the holding cells.

...

"This is an interesting plan you have. I'd have thought it would be easier to just fly straight there and look around," Diana says from next to Bruce in the first class section of a commercial airline. At the moment, she is dressed in a pair of dark blue bootleg jeans, low-heeled black boots and a green sweater. She is wearing makeup for once, and a pair of glasses over her eyes.

"Neither of us know the lay of the land very well, so I thought it would be a good idea to show up as tourist and get a feel of our surroundings before we go out in our work clothes," Bruce tells her. At the moment he is dressed in a white sweater, a pair of well used jeans, a pair of white sneakers, and he has a mustache on his face. And he is now blond.

"They know we're coming, so what's the point of the subterfuge?" Diana asks.

"We have to find them, analyse their hideout for weaknesses, and come up with a strategy to take them by surprise. Going incognito will give us more time and freedom to work," he answers.

She looks down at her hand and plays with the two rings on her finger. "So we are passing ourselves off as a married couple on our second honeymoon?" she ask.

Bruce looks over at her, "Yes," he says slowly.

She leans back in her seat and grins, "This'll be fun."

"Princess, we aren't doing this for fun, we are doing this to take down an evil cult armed with supernatural powers and Amazons," he tells her. Diana looks at him with one eye and grins wider. Bruce can't help but smile, "Alright, maybe that does sound like fun."

...

Deep with in the headquarters of the Dark Amazons in Trondheim, their leader and priestess walks through the halls to her bedroom with her strongest warrior beside her. "We were able to return all our sisters in Gotham to the darkness, except for their leader, so we must assume the Batman and Princess have interrogated her and discovered our location," the warrior reports. "They will be on their way."

"Yes, make sure we are prepared for them," Tal Rashiarna orders.

"Of course. These so-called superheroes will meet their end at our feet," the warrior answers.

"Don't make the same mistake your sisters before you did," the priestess warns. "The two of them have taken on gods and won. This upcoming battle will be the hardest of our lives."

"Yes, mistress," her subordinate answers.

When they reach Tal's door she says, "Good. Now leave me."

When the warrior leaves the Xechasmenos's Priestess walks inside. The room lacks any windows and is oppressively dark. Black drapes with gold designs hang off the walls, the floor is overlain with thick, expensive carpets, there is a stone altar, with dried blood covering it on the far wall, a dresser with a large mirror over top of it next to another wall. There is a large four poster bed in the center of the room - with a naked young man chained to it.

Tal Rashiarna drops the large hooded robe she was wearing and reveals herself to be a large, very fit woman in what appears to be in her late fifties or early sixties, with gray streaks in her hair and other signs of age on her otherwise healthy looking body. She walks over to the man on the bed and coos, "Do I look old to you?"

"N-no," the man nervously answers. "You look beautiful."

"Really, do you think?" she asks.

"Yes," he answers.

She crawls onto the bed and straddles the man. Tal then looks down at him and asks, "Do you want to help me feel young?"

"Oh yes," he answers.

The Dark Amazon removes a necklace from around the bed post and places it around the man's neck, kissing him as she does so. She then leans back, reaches behind her, and draws a dagger. She then holds it high up over the man's chest and, before he can scream, plunges its blade straight into his heart. The man beneath her dies instantly. The necklace she put on him begins to glow and as it does, the years fall off of Tal Rashiarna's face. Her hair returns to solid brown, her skin becomes more pink and fair. As the glow dims the Xechasmenos's leader now appears to be a woman in her mid twenties.

The fiendish ritual finished, Tal lays down against the dead man, kisses him on the cheek, and tells him, "You were wonderful, dear."

_TBC. The reviews are always appreciated._


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks for everyone who reviewed and for The Lady Isis for betaing for me. Here's chapter 6!**

Bruce and Diana walk into the second nicest hotel in Trondheim and step up to the check-in desk. "Excuse me...um...we reservation," Bruce says, in intentionally broken Norwegian.

"Oh it's alright, I speak English," the woman at the desk tells him.

"Oh, in that case we have a reservation under Mr. and Mrs. Murdock," he says.

"Yes I have you here," the woman answers, grabbing a pair of keycards.

"No 'oneymoon suite?" Diana asks in a very impressive French accent, which catches her partner by surprise.

"Well dear we aren't made of money. Besides, the hotel room isn't what you want to remember is it?" he asks.

"No, I guess not. As long as it 'as a strong bed, it should be alright," Diana says with a wink to the woman.

Bruce does his best Clark Kent impression by grinning sheepishly at the smiling lady behind the desk and quickly trying to shuffle off to the elevator with his 'wife' in tow. Once the lift doors shut, he says, "Nice French accent."

"Thanks," she answers, smirking a bit. "So are we sneaking out tonight?"

The lift doors open and the two step out while he answers, "I'd like to get some reconnaissance done before we go out in costume, and it's too late for us to slip out without causing some suspicion. We'll start early tomorrow."

Diana nods and is grateful to hear it, because she's wanted to get some rest since before the whole situation started. She would have slept on the way here but she's found that she is unable to sleep on planes. The two soon get to their room and step inside. While it isn't as grand as the two of them are used to, it is nicely furnished and clean with a comfortable looking bed taking up the center of it.

They drop their luggage and remove their coats. Bruce says, "You can use the shower first."

The princess takes the offer and steps into the bathroom. As she's stripping off her clothes she can't help but chuckle a bit at the fact that she is naked in an hotel room with Batman. She can just imagine the look on Donna's face if she tells her. She takes a quick shower and comes out to find Bruce on his laptop, having a video chat with Dr. Fate.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be more helpful," Fate says.

"We didn't give you much to go on," Bruce answers.

"I'll keep looking, if you find out anything more about them," the mystical hero says.

"We'll be in touch," Bruce answers before cutting the feed.

"No luck?" Diana asks from behind him, dressed in a simple oversized shirt and drying her hair.

"Not yet, but at least he was able to get back to us," he answers standing up. She gives him an odd look. "What?"

"Oh, nothing really - I'm just not used to you being blond," she answers.

He smirks. "Given you history with men I thought you'd think I'd look better this way," he says.

"You definitely look better the way you actually are," she tells him. "Though the thought is appreciated."

"That's..." he starts.

"Yeah I know, I was kidding. Now go take your shower, I left you some hot water," she answers. He thanks her and goes into the bathroom. While he's out Diana stretches then does her prayers. By the time she is done Bruce steps back into the room. "That was fast," she comments.

"Well you didn't leave me that much hot water," he tells her, pulling back the covers on the bed and taking a pillow.

As he lays down on the floor Diana crawls over the bed and looks over the edge at him asking, "What are you doing?"

"Going to sleep," he answers.

"On the floor?" she asks.

"I've had worse accommodations," he answers.

"Bruce, _why_ are you sleeping on the floor?" she asks again, more clearly.

"Because, Princess, we only have one bed," he tells her.

"And I think its big enough for both of us," Diana answers. "Do you think I'm a bed hog?"

"Diana..."

"Bruce, I think we are both mature enough to share a bed platonically. I'll even keep my clothes on to keep things from getting awkward," she tells him.

He sighs, then stands and crawls into bed next to her. They lay there, their backs to each other and Bruce turns out the light. "Good night, Princess," he says.

"Pleasant dreams Bruce," she replies.

…

Within the home of the Xechasmenos, one of the dark Amazons kneels, naked on the floor, with her arms in cuffs. Each one is connected, via a chain, to a post, one on either side of her. Around her stand her sisters, all of whom stand in silence, and before her stands her leader and prophet Tal Rashiarna.

The dark priestess speaks, "We have lost one of our greatest gifts and strongest weapons. In the struggle that lies before us, we cannot bear its loss, so it must be replaced. Taking its place is an act of faith to the Darker Gods, a great gift, a tremendous sacrifice, and above all...an honor." Tal looks down at the woman chained between the posts and asks, "Are you ready to have this honor bestowed on you?"

"I am," she answers.

The kneeling woman then sticks out her tongue as if she were taking communion as her priestess produces her dagger. Tal cuts down the center of the woman's tongue, then rubs her thumb across the wound to collect some of the blood. She then uses the blood to mark some symbols on her worshiper's face and chest. She then step back and her and all the Xechasmenos in attendance begin to chant words in a language which is awkward and wrong coming out of human mouths.

As the dark Amazons chant, the kneeling woman's tattoos begin to glow with an eerie green light as blood begins to leak from her mouth on to the floor. The chanting continues at the same pace and volume and the woman begins to contort in pain. The Amazon finally screams when curved spikes begin to burst out of the skin of her arms. The screams continue and begin to lose their humanity as the chanting continues, never changing. Finally her sisters' voices stop and woman chained between the posts stands forever changed and looks down on Tal Rashiarna.

Tal looks up at the now demon-form of her disciple and says, "You honor us with your faith, my child. Get used to your new form and your new power, for soon you will taste Themysciran flesh."

At those words, the fiend howls into the night.

…

Diana wakes from a pleasant sleep to find that the covers have been tossed off the bed in the night - and instead of lying on a comfortable mattress, she is lying on a powerfully muscular chest of a man. Her legs are wrapped around him, hugging his hips and his arm lies across her back. She looks up and sees Bruce's face in a state of peaceful rest. Not wanting to wake him yet, and rather comfortable, she simply lays her head back down on his chest and tries to catch a few more minutes of sleep.

Eventually Bruce stirs and looks down to see the position he's in. Not sure he's truly awake he has to ask, "Diana?"

She looks up at him and smiles, "Good morning, Bruce."

"Never thought we'd be in this position," he says looking down at the beautiful Amazon wrapped around him.

"Not with our clothes on at least," she says, untangling herself from him and stretching.

As her back arcs backwards he can't help but look at her. Eventually he stands and walks to the bathroom saying, "I think I'll take my shower first this time."

"Bruce remember when we were thinking of taking our relationship beyond friendship?" Diana asks. He doesn't answer but he stops in his tracks. "Do you ever think about what would have been if we didn't favor caution?"

"You were the one who decide not to risk our friendship, so the question really is if you ever think about it," he answers.

Diana looks away and thinks for a second. "Bruce, did I ever tell you about what I went through during the Blackest Night? About how I was able to break free of the black ring?"

He turns to her then. "No you didn't."

She nods. "When this is over, I will," she tells him. "For now, go take your shower."

When she hears the shower start Diana allows herself to think back to that night, her fight with Mera, the horrible power that consumed her, and the sweet memory which saved her soul. Then she pushes that aside and begins her morning prayers and exercises, while such memories are pleasant she had no time for them now. They are facing a new and powerful enemy and she needs to be sharp.

…

Mr. and Mrs. Murdock walk out of their hotel and catch a cab. Diana asks, "Any idea where we should start our hunt?"

"We're going on a tour," Bruce answers. "After that we'll take it from there."

The taxi comes and Bruce holds the door open for his "wife" to enter. A few seconds later they speeding through the city streets. "You think their stronghold will be on the tour?" Diana asks.

"No, but it will give us a basic lay of the land. And who knows, stranger things have happened," he answers.

_TBC. Reviews are always welcome and appreciated._


	7. Chapter 7

**Once again The Lady Isis was nice enough to help me out as my Beta, so I'd like to thank her and everyone who was nice enough to leave a review. Here's chapter 7...**

The tour goes better than Diana is expecting, so much so that she makes a promise to herself to return to the city some time when she isn't searching for a cult of hell-worshipping madwomen. Their guide leads them and other tourists to many sights, such as the Trondelag Theatre, the city's Symphony Orchestra, several prestigious universities, and the Lerkendal Stadium. After the tour the heroic couple decide to split up to cover more ground.

Given her partner's talent as a detective, Wonder Woman decides that she should use her god-given gifts to try and find her enemies, so she of course begins talking to the animals. While she can't question animals in the same way she can people, her ability to commune with the birds, rodents, and even the pets throughout the city leads her to a building in a quiet part of town. As she stands in front of it, trying to decide whether she should call her partner yet, she sees her "husband" walking towards her.

"'Bon soire, mon chère," Diana says in French. To her slight surprise when he gets to her Bruce slides his arm around her back and gives her a kiss. While she isn't expecting to feel his lips against hers she certainly isn't complaining.

Once the kiss ends he whispers into her ear, "What brought you here?"

"I talked to the wild life. The one thing every creature in the city can agree on is that they are afraid of this building," she whispers back, slightly gesturing to the sterile office building before them. "What about you?"

"All I had to do was follow her," he answers, nodding his head to a tall woman in a hoodie walking to the office building.

The Amazon looks over at her and replies, "You've found a tall woman in Norway? Amazing."

He givers her a half-grin and explains, "A tall woman with the same tattoos as my house guest." As they discreetly watch the woman pulls out a modern keycard, swipes it at the door, puts in a twelve letter pass-code, then looks into it as a laser scans her eye before the door finally opens and she steps inside.

"At least it looks like we won't have to deal with any magic to get inside," he says.

"Don't relax too soon. They'll probably have plenty of mystical safeguards inside," Diana tells him. "Well it looks like we've found our prey. Should we go inside and say hello?" she asks.

"Yes, but we'll do it tonight. I work better in the dark," he explains. Diana just looks up at him and grins. "Thats not what I meant, but..." he lets the sentence hang.

She holds his gaze for a full minute before finally turning around and leading him back to their hotel.

…

The two superheroes don't get three steps through the main doors of their hotel before Diana attacks Bruce, throwing herself bodily against him, grabbing his shirt and pulling him into a kiss. As the embarrassed but smiling staff avert their gazes, Diana lets go of the lip lock and starts kissing her way down his neck while saying nasty things in French while Bruce drags her to the elevator.

Once the doors shut and they're alone Bruce catches his breath and says, "You're enjoying this aren't you?"

"You're damn right," she answers while laughing and fixing her hair. "I'm in a new and interesting place with a handsome man, and at the moment no one is dying or trying to kill me, so I've decided to enjoy myself while I can."

Though he smiles, Bruce still rolls his eyes and says, "You've been hanging out with Flash and Superman too long."

When the doors open the two quickly make their way to their room. "Trust me, Bruce, I do not have too much of a social life," she says, stepping inside.

Bruce takes off his coat, looks at the clock, and says, "We have a few hours to kill."

"I'll call room service," Diana says picking up the phone.

"You better wait an hour for that," he tells her.

"Why?" she asks.

"After your little performance the staff will think that we'll be busy," he answers.

She smiles again and hangs up the phone. "I'd think a man of your talent and skill could take longer than an hour," she says mischievously.

He crosses his arms, smiles, and tells her, "A man of my skill and talents can do amazing things in an hour."

Diana takes off her glasses and shakes her head before walking into the bathroom. "I'm taking a shower. Don't worry I'll save you more hot water this time," she tells him.

"Don't bother," he answers as the door shuts.

…

To help pass the time, the pair order dinner and watch a movie. "You don't suppose this is based off of real events do you?" Bruce asks.

"No. In my experience, trolls are susceptible to fire not sunlight and they don't seem to care about your religion," Diana answers. "It is very well shot though."

Bruce looks over at the clock and says, "We better start getting ready." With that he walks to the corner of the room and begins to change.

He and Diana have seen each other change before - as well as naked - so doing it in the room is not that strange, and he trusts her not to look. The Amazon can't help but take a quick glance anyway though. Normally, that's all it would be, a quick admiring glance, but this time for some reason she just can't pull away and instead stares transfixed at him. So enchanted is she that she can't help walking over and placing her hands on the skin of his back.

He stops cold and stands up straight when he feels her warm hands on him. "Princess?" he asks.

Her finger idly traces one of the lines on his skin before she says, "Have I ever told you how sexy I find battle scars on men Bruce?"

He swallows and tells her, "This doesn't seem like an appropriate time to talk about that, Diana."

"I disagree," she answers kissing a faded scratch at the nape of his neck.

"Diana...Wonder Woman, we have a job to do," Bruce tells her as he tries to will away his arousal.

Her hands move to his chest and she licks a scar that runs a line from the middle of his back to his left shoulder before she whispers into his ear, "Our work never ends, we'll have plenty of time for that later. Right now I've gone without having you inside me for too long."

Then she quite forcefully throws him onto the bed. Bruce starts to sit up when she leaps into his lap, straddling him, and pulls off her top. Anything he was about to say dies on his tongue when Bruce sees his Princess half naked and looking down at him with pure lust in her eyes. She smiles and kisses him deeply, coaxing his tongue into a duel with hers.

They break for air finally but she soon forces his face into her chest. As he kisses and suckles her breasts the Amazon moans in heat and grinds her hips against his, rubbing his erection through their cloths next to the heat of her loins. Naturally as this is going the rational side of his mind is drowning in the pleasure and the animalistic need of the moment, but it does notice a glint of gold from the corner of his eye and causes his arm to reach out and grab the Lasso of Truth.

With more than half of him screaming in rage for him not to stop the amazing thing thats happening to him, Bruce manages to pull himself away and wrap the magical cord around her shouting, "Diana!"

The lust (well most of it) leaves her eyes and she looks at him a bit confused. "Bruce?" At that moment the door to their room is knocked in and two dozen Xechasmenos flood in.

Though caught by the surprise, outnumbered, and mostly naked the two heroes throw themselves into the fight. Though the pair are able to knock out several of the Dark Amazons, they are eventually overwhelmed and defeated.

…

Several hours later Diana comes to to find that her capters were nice enough to throw a shirt on her before tying her to a pole with her own Lasso in the back corner of a large room. "Diana, daughter of Hippolyta, Princess of the Amazons of Themyscira," a voice in the darkness addresses her. The heroine looks up to see Tal Rashiarna step forward out of the shadows. "Or do you prefer 'Wonder Woman'?" she asks.

"My enemies call me Wonder Woman, so that is appropriate for you," Diana answers. "Tal I presume?"

"Tal Rashiarna, leader of those who were forgotten," the dark priestess answers. She reaches forward and brushes a strand of hair out of the Princess's face. "It is strange, but I am happy to finally see you in person. You look so much like an old friend of mine, but with darker hair. Perhaps a little bustier," she says.

"My mother never forgot about you," Diana tells her.

"No but she did cast us out," Tal answers. "Which was foolish, as if she had my masters' power when Ares came, her people never would have fallen to slavery."

"Maybe, but she and her subjects would have had to give up their souls," Wonder Woman says back.

"Souls are just things we and other lesser beings keep warm until the gods have use of them. You should know that better than anyone," the ancient sorceress tells her.

"Tell yourself whatever you wish but don't expect me to agree," Diana tells her. "Where is Batman?"

"Somewhere safe," Tal answers, "I need him. Not in the way you do, of course, but for a ritual. Sorry about the passion spell by the way, it just seemed like the best distraction possible. I'm curious - what does your mother think of your infatuation with a mortal man?"

"She doesn't know," Diana answers truthfully.

"No, I bet she doesn't. Polly always was interested in men who were larger than life and almost powerful enough to make their arrogance justified. She probably thinks you're just like her and will go running after Superman," Tal Rashiarna says.

"What ritual do you need Batman for?" Wonder Woman asks, having no interest in the conversation her kidnapper is trying to start.

"One that will give us power enough to rule over all we see and leave our enemies broken at our feet," she answers, smiling at the mere thought of so much power.

"Use me instead," Diana asks. "Someone with divine power within them must make a better sacrifice than a mortal man."

"I'm sorry, my child, but Batman is an essential part in my recipe. The man you love will die at moonrise tomorrow night," Tal tells her. "But I will be merciful."

"How is _that _mercy?" Diana demands.

The answer is simple. "I won't make you watch."

Wonder Woman narrows her eyes at the villain and tells her, "I will stop you."

"I expect you to try," the Xechasmenos answers. Then the room lights up showing several Honored Sisters chained to the walls around the superhero, each with enough length and movement room to attack her if she tries to escape. Tal Rashiarna strokes the chin of one of the deformed Amazons before she tells Diana, "Enjoy your company," before walking out.

Diana leans her head back against the pole while struggling to hold back tears of frustration and quietly says, "Gaia, Hera, Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, Hermes... Mother...give me strength to save the one I love. I don't want to think of life without him."

…

Bruce finds himself awake and completely naked in the middle of plastic cell with several Xechasmenos watching him. When he comes to and stands, one of the Dark Amazons says in their native language, "Is it warmer in there than it is out here?"

"It shouldn't be, why do you ask?" another answers.

"It's cold out here ... aren't men supposed to shrink when it's cold?" the first asks.

"Maybe it did. He is the Princess's concubine," another says.

"What do you think Tal Rashiarna would do to us if we played with him for a bit?" the first guard asks.

"Rip out your soul and feed your flesh to the children," the second guard answers. "He's irreplaceable."

"Why? He's not that impressive," the third guard says.

"Because he's the only man alive who's killed a god," the second guard answers.

Bruce looks up at the ceiling and thinks to himself, _How are going to get yourself out of this one, Batman?_

_TBC. Reviews are always welcome!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Once more the Lady Isis was nice enough to BETA this for me, so much appreciation goes to her, and I'd like to thank everyone who was nice enough to leave a review. Here is chapter 8...**

After spending a few hours looking for weaknesses in the security around him (and finding nothing), Bruce spends the rest of his time working out while trying to ignore his audience, until finally sitting down on the cold floor and meditating. His guards never leave without a replacement coming in and never take their eyes off of him. In fact, they seem rather curious about his nude form; one dark amazon in particular licks her lips often while watching him.

Eventually the dark priestess of the Xechasmenos arrives outside his cell. "Hello, Batman. It is an honor to be in your..." she pauses for a moment and looks over his battle scarred body, "...presence. I've never before met someone who has murdered a god. You have my respect."

"I believe you might be mistaken, I don't recall ever killing a god," he tells her.

"I am not mistaken, you killed Lord Darkseid, ruler of Apokalips and god of anti-life," Tal Rashiarna calmly answers.

Batman snorts, "An arrogant tyrant who was often defeated by a Kryptonian counts as a 'god' to you?"

"He counts enough to make you the linchpin of my ceremony tonight," Tal answers.

Batman stands and looks the evil cleric in the eye and tells her, "I won't come quietly."

"I have enough warriors, creatures, and magic to get even someone as formidable as you where I need you to be, but if you are nice enough to do as you're told without resistance then I promise not to bring down my newfound power on your beloved Gotham," the dark Amazon replies.

"Your promises mean nothing to me," Batman tells her, stepping into a fighting stance.

"As you wish," Tal answers gesturing for her guards to step in and take him.

The first guard into the cell makes a grab for the hero, unfortunately for her the prisoner not only dodges her lunge but is able to pull the sword from her belt. Before she can even get out of the way so her sisters can get through the door Batman slashes her above her eyes, blinding the dark Amazon with her own blood. Then he kicks her left knee, knocking her leg out from under her and pitching her forward. Finally he brings the pommel of the sword down on the back of her skull as he raises his right knee into her chin, violently knocking her out.

With the first of his guards on the ground at his feet Batman points the sword at the two others and glares at them, silently daring the evil warriors to try and get him. The two remaining guards draw their swords and step into the cell, their leader telling them, "Remember, we need him alive," as they do.

The one on the left makes a high cut to the left while her sister on the right goes for a low lunge. Batman ducks and side steps the blows easily then imbeds his sword into the Xechasmenos on the left's thigh. Then, as she reaches for the blade in her leg and her partner turns towards the hero, Batman grabs the wounded woman and hurls her off the ground and into the other guard.

Before Batman has a chance to do anything else Tal Rashiarna pounces, wrapping her arm around his throat in a sleeper hold. Struggle as he might, Tal has the strength of a true Amazon and Batman can not break out of her hold.

"You would have fathered great daughters for me," the priestess tells him. "Instead you will give us the strength to make this world ours." Then she gently bites his ear and whispers to him as his vision begins to fade, "Because of that I will never forget you."

…

Wonder Woman was left in the room with the Honored Sisters for hours, with nothing but the sounds of the creatures' inhuman screeching, the loud clanking of their chains to hear and nothing but their deformed faces and hungry eyes to look at. That whole time she was slowly working her way out of her bonds. While the pole she is tightly tied to is made out of too strong of a material for her to smash open with a couple of backward slams with her head (something she has painfully discovered) she's been wearing it down another way. For hours she's been pushing herself forward against the impenetrable cord that binds her, and with all her might she's been moving her whole body to the left then the right as much as she possibly can, grinding the Lasso against the pole and slowly cutting into it. The result of which is that she is now finally getting some slack.

Now, with her back rubbed raw and the marks of the Lasso's coils imprinted on her arms and chest she painfully forces her binding down her body and off of her. Her hours of painful work pay off as she finally slips free of her bonds and painfully stretches. She then retrieves her magical Lasso from the pole and turns to her next obstacle ... namely the half a dozen demonic Amazon monsters chomping at the bit, just to get a piece of her.

Wonder Woman thinks on the situation then turns and sees the pole she was tied to sticking up out of the ground. She walks up to the large stone cylinder, gets a good grip on it, and then pulls up hard on it, ripping the whole thing (including the four feet extending into the floor) out. Then holding it like a massive club she turns towards the monsters and says, "I'm getting to that door. You are going to try and stop me. So if there is anything left of the women you used to be inside you...I am sorry." She then lets out a battle war cry and charges forward.

Outside the giant steel door two Xechasmenos stand on guard duty, the third having already been sent to get reinforcements, are trying to unlock and open the door. Before the dark Amazons can get inside there is a loud bang as something very strong strikes the door. The dark Amazons step back and bare their weapons a second before the giant steel door is kicked down by the bloody and angry Wonder Woman, who is still holding the shattered remains of the pole in her hands.

Her blue eyes, full of rage, look out through the hair in her face at them and she says, "You are in my way."

The two Xechasmenos charge the Amazon Princess with swords bared, only for the first one to get the chunk of stone pole in the face and the other to receive stiff kick to the gut. While the guard who took the blow to the face goes down for the count her partner recovers and swings her sword at the heroine's face. Wonder Woman blocks the blade with her bracelet and counters with a right hook to her enemy's jaw. The Xechasmenos recovers enough from the blow to lunge forward with her sword aimed at the Princess's belly. Wonder Woman dodges the strike, grabs the evil woman by the hair, pulls her head back, then slams her face first into the wall hard enough to crack the stone. As the guard slumps to the ground Wonder Woman picks her sword up, and her partner's sword, and then goes to rescue Batman.

…

After she knocked him out Tal drugged Batman with something strong enough to keep him out for the duration of the ritual. His unconscious body is dressed in a black silk outfit that bears a resemblance to the Dark Knight's own uniform including a cape and cowl. Then four Xechasmenos in dark purple ceremonial robes carry Batman's unconscious form into a large room and lay him on a raised stone slab.

Hanging by a chain from the ceiling over the slab is a glass orb the size of a basketball, inside of which is an amorphous and shifting black plasma. In front of the slab is a half dozen steps that lead to a raised platform, on the steps kneel twenty Xechasmenos all with blood marking their skin in strange symbols and all are chanting that alien language. On the raised platform is a stone alter with dried human blood and several other disturbing vestments on it, behind that stands Tal Rashiarna dressed in a black robe, and behind her stands two dozen dark Amazons in full battle regalia. As her sisters chant the dark priestess takes her life stealing blade and uses it to cut open her hand, then she slowly drips her blood on the alter and starts a different alien chant than the sisters on the steps. As the air is filled with smell of blood and demonic language the glass orb begins to shed darkness on to Batman's slumbering body.

…

Bruce finds himself standing in a hot void, like the salt flats on a bright and clear day. Out of the blurry haze steps his Princess, dressed in a long flowing white gown. As she walks closer to him Bruce asks, "Diana? Where are we? How did we get here? What happened to the Xechasmenos?"

Diana smiles at him. "You don't have to worry about any of that anymore. Just take my hand and follow me, and I'll take you somewhere far from all of your troubles," she tells him.

…

Back in the real world, Wonder Woman finally makes it to the party. Part of the wall on the right side of the room explodes outward to reveal her enraged form. In the hallway behind her there are the littered bodies of the fallen Xechasmenos, who were foolish or unlucky enough to get in her way. She quickly looks over the room and sees Batman lying prone under the spell of the dark ritual.

"Bruce," she says a second before she starts charging forward.

The four who carried Batman to his fate drop their robes, exposing themselves dressed in black armor, and halt the warrior princess. While even four on one, the dark Amazons are no match for Diana they are soon joined by the two dozen who were waiting behind Tal Rashiarna and the weight of numbers soon pushes Diana back. Through all of this the dark priestess and her kneeling choir never break their chant.

…

Back in the void, Bruce narrows his eyes at the woman in front of him. "Who are you?" he asks her.

"I am your salvation. Come with me and I will free you of all your problems and breathe life into all of your desires," she seductively answers.

"No, I'm needed elsewhere," he tells her.

The void around them darkens a bit and the false Diana asks, "Don't you feel tired?" After she asks that a wave of exhaustion passes through Bruce and he almost falls to his knees. "Don't you deserve some rest?"

The hero forces himself to stand up straight look the "woman" in the eye. "I will not lose to you. I'll deal with Tal. I'll stop you!" he tells her.

The world around them continues to darken as the imitation Diana's smile flatters and she looks sadly at him. "But you are only human," she says. The void finally shifts to pitch black and loud alien voices from the darkness add their voice to the false woman's before him. "You are weak, powerless. If you stand against us you will only be destroyed. Your only choice is to submit. Now take our hand and let go," the whole world around him commands.

"I don't know what the hell you are, but I will never submit to you!" Bruce shouts into the void. "I will stand between you and the people of my world until the end of the Earth if I have to and I will never give up!"

"You can barely stand," the creatures surrounding him calmly state. "You are mortal, you can not hope to resist our power. You are nothing."

The man from Gotham stands in the middle of a malevolent alien shadow, with a demonic power far beyond his understanding closing in on all sides. Any sane man in his position should rightly quake with fear. This man however laughs. He laughs hard and loudly at the unimaginable evil around him. "Nothing?" he asks the darkness quietly. "You think I'm nothing?" He laughs again at the eldritch horror that has all but consumed him. "I am vengeance," he tells it. "I am the night!" He looks up into the black void and shouts, "I AM! BATMAN!"

…

Back in the ceremonial chamber Tal Rashiarna and her followers continue their horrible ritual, never pausing, as the sounds of battle fill the air. The number of Dark Amazon warriors has significantly thinned out in the last few minutes but the painful struggles of the day are finally catching up on Wonder Woman as she battles for her (and Batman's) life.

Normally in her role as a superhero Wonder Woman fights to defeat her foes and take them in alive. However with the stakes as they are, and the nature of her enemy, Diana has thrown such caution to the wind and now is fighting with her all, striking killing blows where her attackers leave openings and not batting an eye at their dying cries of the Xechasmenos or the blood flying through the air with each swipe of her blades.

Now as the ceremony is winding down only five Xechasmenos warriors stand against the Champion of Themyscira. As they all attack Diana she ducks and weaves around all the blades, turns one of her swords around in her hand so that its blade is pointing backwards, then stabs backwards into one of her attackers' chest with such strength that it pierces straight through her armor, her breast plate, and her flesh to stab her heart. Her eyes go dead and Wonder Woman pulls the blade free to block an overhead slash. She then raises her other sword to block a thrust from her right, while turning her head to the side to avoid a third attacker's sword thrust to her face before kicking that Dark Amazon in the gut. While she is busy with them however her last opponent delivers a two handed slash across Diana's back, cutting her from shoulder to hip.

Wonder Woman howls in pain and battle furry before shoving the attackers at her sides away with superhuman strength, floating up and delivering a two legged backwards mule kick at the woman "lucky" enough to land a blow on her, a kick which flings the Dark Amazon backwards through the air and head first into the wall.

The Xechasmenos the superhero kicked in the gut attacks again only for her sword to be blocked and to get headbutted with enough force to knock her on her ass. The two attackers on the side charge forward in unison and Wonder Woman parries their swords, grabs them both, and slams them together. While they're dazed, Diana takes a step back and swings with both her swords, beheading the evil women. Her final opponent leaps over the her two dead sisters and tries to deliver a downward thrust to the Themysciran's face. Diana dodges to the left and continues the movement into a left handed slash across the woman's back and follows it up by bringing her second sword down in a thrust, impaling the woman from back to out the chest and killing her.

Before Diana can rush over her fallen enemies to save him, Bruce's body lurches up and roars in rage. Tal and her chanters all stop at once and look up in shock, surprised by the angry howl coming from their victim. The dark glow from the glass ball abruptly stops and the whole Orb cracks. Tal Rashiarna looks up at it in shock and fear, knowing what will now come next.

_TBC. Reviews are welcome and appreciated. Happy Holidays!_


	9. Chapter 9

**I would like to thank The Lady Isis for her help and everyone who was nice enough to leave a review. Here is the final chapter!**

The demonic entities known to the Dark Amazons as "Darker Gods", enraged and hungry after being denied their offering, reach out to slake their thirst for souls. The only morsels marked for them are the Xechasmenos themselves. Tentacles of black plasma reach out through the cracks in the glass of the globe and strike out at the remaining members of the mad sisterhood, and each strike causes their tattoos to flare brightly for a moment before the woman falls dead, and the alien appendage goes searching for its next meal. Reinforcements show up to the ritual room to try and help the superhero situation, only to fall prey to their own dark deities.

The only member of the Xechasmenos to not fall prey to the Darker Gods, Tal Rashiarna quickly makes her escape. Instead of going after the evil priestess, Diana rushes over to the man on the stone slab.

"Bruce?" she calls out, shaking him as their enemies die around them.

Bruce's eyes open and he groans as he sits up. "Diana? It's really you, right?" he asks her, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

She sighs in relief. "Yes it's me. Are you alright?" she asks.

"I'm fine," he tells her. Then he looks around, assesses the situation, and sees that Tal is not there. "Tal escaped?"

"She ran a few seconds ago," Diana answers.

"Go after her then. I'll catch up to you as soon as I pull myself together," Batman tells her.

Had Steve Trevor asked her to do that, she would have flatly refused and flown him out of there. Instead, she hands Batman one of her swords and takes off after the Dark Amazon.

…

Tal has made it outside and is well on her way to disappearing into the night when the Princess of Themyscira bursts straight through the wall of her headquarters and tackles her to the ground.

"This ends here, Tal!" Wonder Woman shouts as she raises her sword up to deliver a killing blow.

Tal catches her arms before the point of the blade can pierce her flesh, then flings the heroine off of her. As both women make it back to their feet the villain looks at her opponent and says, "You would normally be more than a match for me little sister. But right now you are beaten, bloody, and tired."

"I'll rest when you are dealt with, witch," Wonder Woman answers, lashing out with her lasso like it was a whip.

Tal shouts a word in a demonic tongue which knocks the golden cord away from her, then she hisses several more alien words and flicks her hand, sending missiles of black magic at her enemy. The Princess blocks the oncoming magical attacks with her bracers as she quickly makes her way closer to the Xechasmenos. When she gets close enough Diana cuts at Tal with her sword, only for Tal to block it with her magical dagger.

The two Amazons cross blades over and over, with Diana soon gaining the advantage. Finally she brings her sword down in a powerful, two-handed, over-head slash. Tal blocks, but the force of the blow knocks her down to one knee. The two are locked there for a moment with the Priestess quickly losing to her much younger and stronger opponent. When Wonder Woman is just about to push forward and knock the villain prone, Tal Rashiarana looks up and shouts out another spell, which knocks the superhero backwards.

Tal tries to take advantage of the new situation buy burying her dagger into Diana's throat, but the Princess soon recovers, dodges the blow, and thrusts her sword through Tal's chest and into her heart.

"Find peace," Diana whispers to her mother's old friend as she looks forward with still eyes.

"You first," Tal Rashiarana replies, before headbutting Wonder Woman. As the Princess stumbles backwards Tal raises her hands and shouts out another spell, which strikes Diana with a barrage of dark magic, that knocks her to the ground.

The evil priestess then calmly pulls out the sword, tosses it to the side, kneels down over the fallen Amazon, then pulls the necklace out of a pocket of her robe. "I told you that you weren't up for this battle, 'my little sun and stars'," the evil woman coos to her groggy prey. She slips the necklace onto Diana. "Rest now, my girl," Tal tells Diana - before she plunges the dagger into the woman's heart.

Diana's eyes snap open and she tries to say something as her life force is pulled out and used to restore her murder's body to full health. Tal looks down sadly at her latest victim as she stands and dusts herself off.

As she collects herself she hears a man's voice, filled with rage, scream, "NOOOO!"

She turns to see an enraged Batman charge straight at her with sword in hand.

While the Xechasmenos blocks the first blow his second knocks the dagger out of her hand and sends it off into the shadows. He then slashes with vicious speed and cuts her across the face, arm, and belly. The surprise quickly wears off though and Tal grabs his sword arm and crushes the bone in her hands. Not even feeling the pain through his fury Batman kicks her in her belly wound. Though she grunts in pain at the kick Tal catches his leg, snaps it, then slams him with a superhuman blow to the chest which cracks his ribs and sends the Dark Knight to the ground next to his dead love.

Despite his injuries, Batman still struggles to pull himself up. Tal simply puts her foot on his shoulder and forces him back to the ground. "You dealt me quite a blow, Batman. You've defied my gods and destroyed my sisters ... but this is still only a setback. I will recover from this. And I _will_ perform my ritual again, count on it," Tal Rashiarana tells him.

At the sound of approaching sirens though, Tal has no more time for anything else. She quickly runs.

With his enemy now gone, Bruce pulls his broken body to Diana. He checks her pulse - there is none. He examines the wound - and finds it completely fatal.

"No. Not like this, please God not like this," he says as his tears fall on her still face.

His mind churns with sorrow, rage, and pain. The thought of his world without her torments him and all the things he hasn't said to her weigh down his soul. Then he sees a glint of metal in the corner of his eye and looks up to see Tal's dagger sitting in a storm drain, like a beacon of hope to his eyes.

Bruce somehow moves his injured body over to grab the weapon and then returns to his loves side. He then removes the necklace from around her neck and slips it on himself. He then puts the dagger into her hand before lifting it up and pointing it at his own heart. "If any god is watching, then please accept this sacrifice and bring her back," he prays before pressing forward and piercing his own heart with the dagger's blade. His last words as his vision goes black are, "Diana, I..."

…

By the time dawn arrives, Tal Rashiarna has made it to a safe house in the outer suburbs of Trondheim. She showers and changes, then picks up the phone. She puts in a number and waits for a moment before she gets an answer.

"It's me. Yes, you could say that we've had a bit of a setback!" she snaps. "Besides myself, all of our sisters in Norway. Our hope is still alive as the sacrifice still lives, and I've removed an enemy by killing-"

Before she can finish her door is kicked in and Wonder Woman, in full armor and full health, steps inside.

Tal smiles and shakes her head as she hangs up the phone. "How?" she asks.

Wonder Woman holds up her dagger and the Dark Amazon sighs. "So the Dark Knight brought back his Princess and made sure that I could never use him to get the power I so desire," she says. "You have good taste in men, Princess."

"I know," Diana growls before belting her across the face with a right cross.

Tal recovers and starts to shout a spell before Wonder Woman kicks her in the gut, grabs her, and throws the villain through the floor boards and into the basement. Diana drops down, only to get a dark magic barrage in the side. That attack doesn't buy the Xechasmenos much time though - Wonder Woman answers with a spinning back kick to her jaw and follows it up with a kick to the back of her leg. Tal Rashiarna tries a backhanded blow, but Diana catches her arm, breaks it, then knees her in the spine. Tal tries to hit Diana with the elbow of her other arm, but Diana catches that two and pulls her into a full nelson and uses that as leverage to slam her face first into the ground.

As Diana binds Tal with the Lasso of Truth the Xechasmenos laughs. "What's so funny?" Diana demands.

"That despite how much you've won today, you have still lost more than I," she answers. "I've lost many of my sisters and my chance at supreme power too, and I'm going to be imprisoned by Hippolyta back on her Paradise Island...but you, my dear... You have lost the one man you've ever truly loved before you were even able to tell him."

"Bruce is not lost to me yet," Diana answers as she yanks the now bound villain to her feet.

"You live, which means that Batman used the Candarian Dagger to give his life force to you. Which means he is quite dead now and not any feat of science, the power of your gods, or even the Lazarus Pits can restore him," Tal Rashiarna explains.

"I don't intend to use any of that to bring him back to me," Diana calmly answers.

"Then..." the Dark Amazon falls silent as Wonder Woman flies her back to the city.

…

The Trondheim's morgue is a quiet place, with clean white hallways and stainless steel tables. On one such table lays the body of a newly received John Doe, a John Doe who has suffered various traumatic injuries including a stab wound straight to his heart which ultimately proved to be the cause of death. The Mortician on call looks the man on his table up and down and tries to make sense of his powerful build and the road map of scars running up and down his body.

Before he can make his first incision the door of his morgue is opened and he turns to see the famous superhero Wonder Woman step in dragging another woman tied in her Lasso behind her.

"Could you please give us the room sir," she asks. The Scandinavian man quickly looks over the situation then smartly decides to make his exit.

With the civilian gone Diana drags Tal to the operating table. "You will not do this Princess," the Dark Amazon tells her, "cold blooded murder is beyond you."

"This isn't murder," she answers, dragging another medical table over next to the one Bruce is laying on.

"What would you call it?" Tal asks as she is picked up and layed on the table.

"I am merely taking back what you've stolen," Diana explains, slipping the necklace around the bound woman's neck.

"Would he think so?" the evil priestess asks. This causes the Princess to pause and Tal jumps at her opportunity. "I know a great deal about Batman including the one thing he refused to do. The one thing he loathes the most is taking lives. He would not consent to murder, not even to save his own life. You know that, Diana, and you know that if you go through with this he will never forgive you."

A few quiet moments go by, then Diana pulls out the dagger and places it into Bruce's dead hand. "It doesn't matter," she says.

"His wishes don't matter?" Tal Rashiarana asks, a little worry slipping into her voice.

"No. And it doesn't matter whether or not he forgives me," she answers flatly. Diana then carefully positions the dagger over Tal's breast then stops long enough to explain. "He can hate me forever and it won't matter. I _refuse_ to loose him like this, because of you."

Tal is about to say something else when Diana lifts up Bruce's hand and then slams it down, plunging the blade into the Xechasmenos's heart. Tal Rashiarana eyes pop wide open and her mouth stretches out into a silent scream as her life force flows through the dagger into the dead man. As color returns to Bruce's skin, his bones melt back together and he sucks in a painful lungful of air before finally his eyes open again.

On the bed next to him, quite the opposite is happening. As life returns to the Dark Knight Tal's pale skin begins to turn a dark gray and shrink next to her bones, her eyes loose their color, her hair turn to death white, and all of her flesh begins to shrivel as if mummifying until finally turning to dust and leaving her blackened bones in her clothing still wrapped in the Lasso of Truth.

Bruce looks around in surprise and sees whats left of the Dark Amazon on the table next to him and sees the dagger once again in his hand he drops it and flinches away in shock. "Diana?" he asks is shock.

With tears of happiness streaming down her face she collects the newly resurrected man in her arms and holds him close. "I'm here, Bruce," she tells him, hugging him close.

"Diana...what?" he asks in confusion.

"I'll explain later. Let's go home."

…

The embrace can't last forever, of course, and eventually Bruce pulls himself free from her. He doesn't ask her anything, looking at the scene he soon put everything together himself, and after that he was very quiet.

Diana, expecting this reaction, had already called in Alfred and his sons who were overjoyed to see Bruce alive. They took him home and she thought that would be the last she heard from him for a long while. So she was a bit surprised when she got a call from Alfred three days later inviting her to the Manor.

She shows up when she was asked to, when the night is about to get late, and is greeted at the door by Alfred. "He seems to want to make this quick, he goes on patrol in about an hour," Diana says stepping inside.

"Actually he asked the rest of the family to take over his patrol for the night," Alfred tells her. "He is waiting for you in his room," he explains.

Diana looks at the master staircase and asks, "How has he been?"

"Unusually quiet," Alfred answers. Diana raises an eyebrow to him and nods. "Yes, more than usual. Though he hasn't been hostile at all," he says, trying to be encouraging.

Diana gives him a parting peck on the cheek before taking the stairs. She soon makes her way to the Manor's master bedroom and finds the door open. She steps inside and sees Bruce standing on his balcony and looking up into the sky. "Good evening, Bruce," she greets him.

"Hello, Princess," he answers not turning around.

She sighs. "I take it that you're upset with me," she says.

Bruce turns, walks back into the room, and looks Diana in the eyes before answering, "Actually I'm not."

"Really?" she asks, genuinely surprised.

"I know, normally I'd be furious over the way I was brought back," he acknowledges, "and I've spent the last few days trying to figure out why I feel the way I do."

"And what have you figured out?" Diana asks him.

"I've tried coming up with excuses, like maybe 'I'm not angry because she killed others to keep her alive over the centuries' or ' I can't be upset because I didn't give her a choice when I brought her back', but none of that is right," he explains.

"Then what is right Bruce? How do you feel?" she asks him.

He walks over to his Princess, takes her in his arms, smiles at her and says, "I'm happy to be alive and to be with you, Diana." Then he kisses her.

…

Early the next morning the both of them are lounging in the afterglow, naked on his bed and in each others arms. "You promised to tell me something once the business with the Xechasmenos was over," Bruce reminds her.

"I did, didn't I?" Diana asks with her head resting on his chest.

"What happened during the Blackest Night?" Bruce asks as he lazily runs his fingers through her hair.

"I was possessed by a Black Ring, turned into a murdering madwoman with hellacious power," she explains.

"Funny, none of the reports had any sightings of you as a Black Lantern," he says.

"My gods were kind," she explains, "Aphrodite locked me into an illusion where I could fight off the Ring's influence and not harm anyone."

"That was nice of her," he comments.

"Yes it was," she answers giggling a little bit. "The illusion kept throwing my family and friends at me, to force me to draw upon my love to free myself." She sits up and looks down into her lover's eyes then. "My love for my mother, my sisters, my friends...none of that was enough to pull me out. It wasn't till I remembered my love for you that I found the strength to liberate myself from the Ring. It was my love for you that saved me."

He sits up and kisses her before hugging her again. "That reminds me of something I went through recently," he tells her.

"Really?" she asks.

"When I was having my duel with the 'Darker Gods' they used an...image of you as their voice, to try and convince me to give in to them," he explains. "While I was fighting them off I know I should have been thinking about my city or my family, but the only thing going through my mind was that I had to fight so that I could see you again," he tells her.

She sits back a bit and smiles at him. "I love you, Bruce," she tells him.

He gives her a half-grin in return. "I love you too, Princess."

_The End. Reviews are always welcome and appreciated._


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